A Dream Come True
by iloveromance
Summary: A long held dream finally comes true for Niles and Daphne and with it, memories of a special person from Daphne's past. A belated birthday gift for crazysockmonkeys, inspired by a chapter of her wonderful story "The Frog Race (and other stories)".


**A/N: This was inspired by the "Sparrows Nest" chapter of Crazysockmonkeys' wonderful story, "The Frog Race (and other stories), and is a belated birthday gift to Crazysockmonkeys for her friendship and support. **

Daphne was exhausted. Never in her life did she imagine childbirth would so painful or so tiresome. Niles never let go of her hand through the experience and yet he looked as exhausted as she did. But there was no denying that the outcome was worth all the discomfort in the world.

She glanced at the beautiful baby in her arms, his handsome, sweet face blurred by her tears. "He's beautiful." She whispered.  
Niles sighed and kissed her cheek. "You're beautiful. And you'll be the most wonderful mother."  
Daphne's eyes moved from her newborn son to her handsome husband and he touched his cheek, kissing him deeply. "I love you."  
"I love you too, Daphne." Niles replied, his voice quivering slightly. It wasn't often that he became so emotional but now he was a father, after so many years of heartbreak and disappointment. Daphne had no doubt that he would be the most amazing father to their son.

"Look at his eyes." She whispered, her gaze returning to her son. "And his hair… he looks so much like you, Niles. Such soft blonde hair."  
"I bet we're the only parents in the world who have a son with brown eyes and blonde hair." Niles said.

Daphne kissed her husband's chin. "He's beautiful." She said once more.  
"Daphne do you have any idea how happy I am?" Niles asked, his voice quivering once more.

The baby began to cry softly and Daphne adjusted him in her arms, drawing him closer. "Perhaps he's hungry. After all, he's just come into the world. Oh, Niles, the thought of giving our baby the first meal he will ever have is just…"  
Tears slid down her cheeks, splashing on the tiny blue blanket wrapped around her son.

"I'll get the nurse." Niles said. He kissed Daphne and the baby before rising from the bed. He returned minutes later with a kiss for his wife and his newborn son. "She's going to take the baby for a few minutes and then bring him back so that you can nurse him. Um… Daphne, are you sure that you don't want me to leave while you… I can go into the lobby with Dad, Ronne, Roz and Frasier."

"Stay with me, please."  
As the nurse and took the baby from Daphne's arms, Niles smiled and kissed Daphne's cheek. "Of course, my love. I just don't want you to be uncomfortable. I thought that perhaps you'd want to bond with our son alone."

Daphne rested her cheek against his. "I want you to share all these moments with our son, Niles. After all, you did have a part in creating him."

Niles sniffled. "It's a miracle that two people could create someone so beautiful?"  
"How could he not be beautiful?" Daphne asked. "When he has such a handsome father?"  
"And a mother who is nothing short of a goddess." Niles finished, smiling when his wife blushed.  
"Niles…"

"Here he is." The nurse said gently putting the baby back into Daphne's arms. "All ready for his first feeding. Now if you need any help, just call. But in the meantime I'll leave the three of you alone."  
"Thank you." Niles said as the nurse left the room.

Daphne adjusted herself on the bed, and rearranged her hospital gown. And when she was ready, she placed the baby against her chest. And before long, he was eating contentedly. Daphne smiled and kissed the baby's soft head. "You were hungry."  
Niles moved closer, stroking the baby's fingers. "So, what are we going to name our bundle of joy? You know I've thought about this a lot and I can't quite come up with a name. There are so many. Should he have a traditional name, a unique name? You know I've always like the name Christopher, but if you have any ideas, I'd."  
"Daniel." She said quickly.

Niles thought for a moment. "Daniel's a nice name, although I think I prefer Christopher."

Feeling disappointment for the first time in a very long time, Daphne lowered her head. "Christopher is a lovely name." She said quietly. The baby became restless as though sensing his mother's sadness. And when she felt Niles' fingertips brushing away her tears, she knew that he was concerned as well.

"Daphne, what's wrong?"  
"Nothing." She lied. "I'm just… so happy."

It hurt to lie to her husband, but she didn't want to deny him the joy of naming their son. Christopher was a wonderful name but she had dreamed for so long….  
"What have you dreamed, Daphne?"

Niles' gentle voice told her that she had spoken out loud. "Niles, I know you hate me stories, but do you mind if I tell you one?"  
"Daphne, I could never hate anything about you. I love you."  
"I know. And I love you. And I promise I'll make it as short as possible. But I think it will help you to understand why I love the name Daniel so much."

She proceeded to tell him the story of her first paying job when she was a young woman in Manchester. Fresh out of school she was hired by a lovely woman named Eva to help her son Daniel with his physical therapy. He was such a handsome boy with blond hair and grey eyes.

"He didn't like me much at first." She continued. "But then he slowly warmed up to me. He missed his father terribly and I felt so sad for him. I can't imagine a father just abandoning their wife and child."

Niles rubbed her shoulder. "And I can't imagine anyone not liking you."  
Daphne turned to kiss Niles' soft cheek. "Thank you, Sweetheart."

"I'm sorry, Daphne. Go on with your story."

"There's not much more to tell, but the more I worked with Daniel the more I fell in love with him. I could hardly believe that this sweet little boy who was in so much pain was scoring the winning goal in his soccer game only a few months later. The worst part was saying goodbye. I really loved that little boy. I loved him so much."  
"That's a beautiful story, Daphne. Daniel sounds like he was a very special little boy."

"He certainly was." Daphne sighed. "That was a long time ago, but it was Daniel who made me realize how much I wanted a child of me own someday." She looked down at the baby, smiling when she saw that he had fallen asleep against her chest.  
"What a sweet angel. Mommy loves you very much."

"May I hold him?"  
She gasped at the boyish smile of her husband as he held out his arms. "Oh Niles, I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking, keeping him all to myself! He's your son too. Of course you can hold him!"  
Niles gently took the baby from her and the sight made Daphne cry once again. It was the most beautiful sight, seeing her husband holding his newborn son for the first time.

"He loves you." She said, smiling as Niles kissed the baby's cheek.  
"Welcome to the world, Daniel. I'm your daddy. And I love you very much."  
Daphne's heart swelled and she put her hand on her chest. "Oh Niles, really?"  
"Daniel is a perfect name."  
"I can't wait to take him home." Daphne said kissing Niles' softly.  
"Soon, my love. And when we do, Daniel is sure to have the happiest life a child could possibly have."

"Of course he will. And it's all because of his father. For you have made all of me dreams come true."  
They kissed once more and Niles stroked Daphne's hair as she leaned against him, smiling at Daniel as he slept contentedly. And when her eyelids grew heavy, she began to drift into her own slumber. And it was then that she heard her husband's voice whispering in her ear;  
"My love, your happiness is only just beginning."

**THE END**


End file.
